Woman accused of drugging and robbing older men in a deadly romance
scheme
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 [February 22, 2025]
By TY ONEIL, JESSE BEDAYN and SEJAL GOVINDARAO
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A woman used online dating apps to lure at least four
older men to meet her in person, then drugged them with sedatives and
stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in a “sinister” romance scheme,
FBI officials in Las Vegas said Friday.
Three of the men died, authorities said, and she has been charged in one
of their deaths.
Aurora Phelps, 43, who is in custody in Mexico, faces 21 counts
including wire fraud, identity theft and one count of kidnapping
resulting in death, Sue Fahami, the acting United States attorney for
the District of Nevada, said at a news conference.
“This is a romance scam on steroids,” said Spencer Evans, the special
agent in charge of the FBI's Las Vegas division. One of the four
victims, who were targeted in 2021 and 2022, awoke from a coma after
Phelps gave him prescription sedatives over the course of a week, Evans
added.
In one instance Phelps is alleged to have kidnapped a victim by heavily
sedating him and taking him across the U.S.-Mexico border in a
wheelchair and then to a Mexico City hotel room, where he was later
found dead.
After incapacitating her victims, Evans said, Phelps stole their cars,
withdrew money from their bank accounts, used their credit cards to
purchase luxury items and gold and even tried to access social security
and retirement accounts.
According to the indictment, Phelps met one man in July 2021, went on
lunch dates with him and that November ordered lunch to his house and
slipped him a prescription drug.
While he was “mostly unconscious” for about five days, Phelps gained
access to his accounts and stole his iPhone, iPads, driver’s license and
bank cards, according to the indictment. She also allegedly accessed his
E-Trade account and sold Apple stock worth about $3.3 million, though
she was unable to withdraw that money.
Authorities believe Phelps used popular dating apps including Tinder,
Hinge and Bumble to find her targets. The men were lonely and looking
for companionship and went on multiple dates with Phelps before she
stealthily gave them sedatives, according to Evans.
“It’s folks that are out looking for love that ran into something far
more sinister,” he said.
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Acting United States Attorney for the District of Nevada Sue Fahami
speaks about an alleged romance scheme that turned deadly during a
news conference in Las Vegas, Friday, Feb. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty
ONeil)
Phelps, a dual citizen of Mexico and the U.S., had been on the FBI's
radar for a couple of years, according to Evans. He declined to
comment on her criminal history.
Phelps does not have a U.S.-based attorney who could speak on her
behalf, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice said. The
Associated Press left messages seeking comment with Mexico’s Foreign
Affairs Ministry and Attorney General’s Office.
Several of the victims' relatives called authorities when they were
unable to contact their loved ones, Evans said.
One woman was unable to reach her father the day after he went on a
date with Phelps in Guadalajara, Mexico, in May 2022, according to
court records. The next day Mexican police found him dead on the
bathroom floor of his home. Phelps then used an account belonging to
the victim to purchase a gold coin, along with other transactions,
the indictment alleges.
The FBI is aware of more alleged victims in the U.S. and Mexico,
Evans said, and is making information about the case public,
including suspected aliases, in hopes of identifying others who
“fell victim to her scams and whose trust in her may have cost them
their life.”
The FBI is also working with the Department of Justice and Mexican
authorities to secure her extradition.
If convicted on every charge, which include seven counts of wire
fraud, three counts of mail fraud, six counts of bank fraud, three
counts of identity theft and one count of kidnapping, Phelps faces a
maximum sentence of life in prison, Fahami said.
___
Bedayn reported from Denver, and Govindarao from Phoenix. Associated
Press writer Fabiola Sánchez in Mexico City contributed.
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